Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments on Linux 5.9 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS & RISC-V Architectures

Linux 5.9 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS & RISC-V Architectures

Linus Torvalds has just announced the release of Linux 5.9 on lkml: Ok, so I’ll be honest – I had hoped for quite a bit fewer changes this last week, but at the same time there doesn’t really seem to be anything particularly scary in here. It’s just more commits and more lines changed than I would have wished for. The bulk of this is the networking fixes that I already mentioned as being pending in the rc8 release notes last weekend. In fact, about half the patch (and probably more of the number of commits) is from the networking stuff (both drivers and elsewhere). Outside of that, the most visible thing is a reinstatement of the fbdev amba-clcd driver – that’s a noticeable patch, but it’s basically just mainly a revert. The rest is really really tiny (mostly some other minor driver updates, but some filesystem and architecture fixes too). There’s just a bit more of those kinds of […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments on Geniatech XPI 3128 RK3128 SBC is Equipped with an NXP WIFi 5 Module

Geniatech XPI 3128 RK3128 SBC is Equipped with an NXP WIFi 5 Module

Geniatech XPI family of single board computers was first introduced in 2018 with the launch of the XPI-S905X development board following many of Raspberry Pi 3 Model B features and form factor. The company has now added another board to the family with XPI 3128 single board computer powered by a Rockchip RK3128 quad-core Cortex-A7 processor coupled with up to  2 GB RAM and 64 GB flash, as well as an NXP WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2 module. Geniatech XPI 3128 specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3128 quad-core Cortex-A7 processor @ up to 1.2GHz GPU with Arm Mali 400 MP2 GPU (See datasheet) System Memory – 512MB DDR3L (1GB, 2GB optional） Storage – 8GB flash (16GB, 32GB, 64GB optional), and MicroSD card slot Video Output – HDMI up to 1080p60 Video – 1080p60 H.264/H.265 video decoding Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet port Dual-band 802.11b/g/n/ac WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2 via Marvell/NXP 88W8897 module, IPEX antenna connector USB – 4x USB 2.0 ports including […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments on Powkiddy X2 is a Low-End Nintendo Switch Lookalike

Powkiddy X2 is a Low-End Nintendo Switch Lookalike

Powkiddy specializes in handheld gaming consoles, and if their latest Powkiddy X2 portable game console looks familiar, it’s because it looks just like a Nintendo Switch. But the comparison stops there. The NVIDIA processor is replaced by a quad-core Cortex-A7 processor, the display has a lower resolution, the controllers aren’t detachable, and unsurprisingly you can’t play any Nintendo Switch games. Powkiddy X2 specification: SoC – Quad-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.3 GHz (possibly Rockchip RK3128) System Memory – TBD Storage – TBD flash storage, MicroSD card slot Display – 7″ IPS display with 1024×600 resolution Video Output – Mini HDMI output Audio – 3.5mm audio jack; speaker(s); MP3/MP4 audio playback USB – 2x Micro USB port to connect external gamepads User input – 2x rockers, 2x D-PADs, select and start keys, function key, L&R; power & reset keys, volume control Battery – 3,000 mAh The console is said to come with 11 game console emulators to play retro games for the […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Rikomagic R6 Mini Projector Review – Part 2: Android 7.1

Rikomagic R6 Mini Projector Review – Part 2: Android 7.1

Rikomagic R6 Android Projector Review

We’ve already quickly checked out Rikomagic R6 mini projector in the first part of the review with an unboxing and first boot,  but now I’ve had more time to play with the device, so I’ll report about my experience. Android Launcher and Default Apps Here’s the launcher pre-installed in the projector. Media Center The Media Center app allows you to display images, play audio files as well as videos. It will show thumbnails of images present in the current folder… and as soon as you select one image in the folder it will start a slideshow with classic music playing the background. You’ll be able to see what it looks like in the video at the end of this review. Happy Cast It’s an app in Chinese, that apparently allows you to cast from other Chinese apps, but I have not used it. WiFi Display WiFi Display will be one of the most useful app, as it allows you to […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on Linux 5.0 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS & RISC-V Architectures

Linux 5.0 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS & RISC-V Architectures

Linux 5.0 Changelog

Linus Torvalds has just released Linux 5.0: Ok, so the last week of the 5.0 release wasn’t entirely quiet, but it’s a lot smaller than rc8 was, and on the whole I’m happy that I delayed a week and did an rc8. It turns out that the actual patch that I talked about in the rc8 release wasn’t the worrisome bug I had thought: yes, we had an uninitialized variable, but the reason we hadn’t immediately noticed it due to a warning was that the way gcc works, the compiler had basically initialized it for us to the right value. So the same thing that caused not the lack of warning, also effectively meant that the fix was a no-op in practice. But hey, we had other bug fixes come in that actually did matter, and the uninitialized variable _could_ have been a problem with another compiler. Regardless – all is well that ends well. We have more than a […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on KINGJIM Pomera DM200 Rockchip RK3128 Portable Mini Computer Can Run Debian

KINGJIM Pomera DM200 Rockchip RK3128 Portable Mini Computer Can Run Debian

Ultra mobile portable computers (UMPC) are somewhat making a come back with products such as GPD Pocket 2 or DragonBox Pyra open source handheld computer. While being fairly powerful, neither devices are particularly inexpensive, and if you are looking for something cheaper, and admittedly much slower, I’ve been informed that Rockchip RK3128 based KINGJIM Pomera DM200 mini computer can be an option since it has been “hacked” to run Debian. By default, the device runs  a Linux OS with user interface in Japanese only, and is sold as a digital memo. Some of the specifications include: SoC – Rockchip RK3128 quad core Cortex A7 processor with Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 512MB RAM Storage – 4GB flash, micro SD slot up to 32GB Display – 7″ TFT LCD display with WSVGA (1024 x 600) resolution Connectivity – WiFi 802.11 b/g/n + Bluetooth 4.0 LE + EDR Keyboard – Japanese keyboard Battery – 3.7V/ 4.2A (16Wh) Lithium Ion battery Power Supply […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments on Rockchip RK3128 based EMISH X700 Smart TV Box is Selling for $16.99 (Promo)

Rockchip RK3128 based EMISH X700 Smart TV Box is Selling for $16.99 (Promo)

Emish-X7010-Smart-TV-Box

GearBest has another time and stock limited promotion with a low cost TV box, namely “EMISH X700 Smart TV Box” going for $16.99 shipped with coupon GB4X7. EMISH X700 (RH46BUS) TV box specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3128 quad core Arm Cortex-A7 processor @ up to 1.2GHz with Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 8GB eMMC flash, micro SD card slot up to 16GB Video Output – HDMI 1.4a up to 1080p60, composite RCA port Audio Output – Optical S/PDIF, HDMI and stereo audio RCA connectors Video Codecs – H.265, H.264 and others up to 1080p60 Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, dual band 802.11 a/b/g/n/ ac WiFi USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports Misc – IR receiver Power Supply – 5V / 2A Dimensions – 18 x 12 x 2.5 cm Weight – 170g The box runs Android 4.4, and ships with an IR remote control, a power adapter, an AV cable, and an English manual. Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc […]

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Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments on Linux 4.15 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.15 Release – Main Changes, Arm and MIPS Architectures

Linus Torvald has released Linux 4.15 last Sunday: After a release cycle that was unusual in so many (bad) ways, this last week was really pleasant. Quiet and small, and no last-minute panics, just small fixes for various issues. I never got a feeling that I’d need to extend things by yet another week, and 4.15 looks fine to me. Half the changes in the last week were misc driver stuff (gpu, input, networking) with the other half being a mix of networking, core kernel and arch updates (mainly x86). But all of it is tiny. So at least we had one good week. This obviously was not a pleasant release cycle, with the whole meltdown/spectre thing coming in in the middle of the cycle and not really gelling with our normal release cycle. The extra two weeks were obviously mainly due to that whole timing issue. Also, it is worth pointing out that it’s not like we’re “done” with […]

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